>> you are watching "the journal" on dw-tv. >> and i have the business news. welcome. >> serious send in more troops, and there is international pressure against damascus. the worst nuclear disaster ever. the world remembers chernobyl 25 years later. enflames sweep through a nature reserve on the german-belgium border. -- and flames sweep through.

syria is not letting up on its move against anti-government protesters. tanks are reportedly rolling into more cities in what appears to be a widening of the crackdown, which began on monday. activists say 23 people have been killed by security forces in one city alone in the last 24 hours. world powers are criticizing damascus, urging the president to reverse course, but assad is not listening. >> the regime had a message for the protesters in the streets of dura. rights groups say people were killed when they crushed the protests. the syrian government of version of the events is a different one. it says the demonstrators are armed groups. state tv show the funerals of 50

military and security officers, including statements from relatives, calling them martyrs, who died trying to protect residents in the city. >> he always wished to die the martyr, and his wish was the field, thank god. i had two sons, and one is gone now, but i am willing to give a martyr for the nation. >> opposition figures from outside syria are meeting in istanbul. they are trying to drum up international support and said that democracy is inevitable in their country despite the bloody crackdown. >> theore the violence, now, there is no going back to the days of fear, to the days of repression. the syrians want their freedom, when democracy, once equality. -- want democracy, want

equality. >> one said that measures would be taken to impact the regime, including targeted sanctions. >> reports from yemen say the government of saleh has agreed to a deal, and the months of unrest in the country. opposition leaders also say ey have accepted the deal and that they planned to sign it on wednesday. anti-government protests continued in the capital. they want him to step down. the deal requires him to step down after a power sharing. discussing nato air strikes against the country, this as fighting continued between troops and rebels loyal to

moammar gaddafi. government troops have launched an assault aimed at retaking the crucial oil port of bregha. misrata. the political unrest in northern africa is sending thousands of migrants here to europe. the italian prime minister silvio berlusconi and the french president nicolas sarkozy met on tuesday to discuss the influx of people, most of whom have landed in italy. the two leaders say they want a deal to tighten border controls within the european union. france and italy are asking the european union to reform a treaty, which allows passport- free travel between most eu- member states. >> after an acrimonious times,

they seem to of patched over their differences. they agree reforms are essential. sarkozy acknowledged tensions between the two nations, but he says they have now agreed on a framework for revisions in the treaties, which allows passport- free travel throughout much of europe. tighter controls in extreme cases. the dispute started with a short influx of north african refugees arriving on italian soil, including more than 23,002 visions fleeing political unrest at home. italy warned that it was overwhelmed. since early april, rove has been issuing six-month residency permits, allowing the migrants to stay. many were french-speaking migrants, who wanted to travel on to france. that prompted action from france. last week, a train carrying a

immigrants was stopped at the border. they need to support themselves financially. critics warn of possible repercussions for european integration and harsher restrictions on passport-free travel. >> all right, talking about more changes within the european union, this time, we are talking about changes in the labor market here in germany. >> yes, something is about to be lifted here in germany. some citizens will be allowed to work in germany. cross-border labor restrictions were put into place in 2004 when poor countries joined the eu, and that was to protect german labor workers from being undercut by cheaper labor. they have been catching up, and it is no longer as common. even so, some in germany still fear for their jobs. >> a german city located on the

west bank of the river, just across from a polish city. soon, many polls could be crossing the border to look for work. -- many poles could be crossing the border. >> i am an electrician, and i will be looking in germany. >> it is difficult. i have already worked in england, and i hope it is easy to find something in germany. >> those who do find work here will come under german labor laws and agreements, entitling them to benefits like minimum wages, regulated working hours, and paid holidays. on may 1, a german labor markets will open to citizens that join the eu in 2004 -- on may 1, german labor market will open. citizens will no longer need a special work permit for germany. a few analysts expect a massive influx of poles to be doing

construction work. some believe it could even benefit germany. >> some sectors still have high levels of job vacancies, and the arrival of people from stern europe will help alleviate this shortage of skilled workers. it will not solve the problem, but it can still help abate it. >> analysts expect those try their luck will be a mix of much skilled laborers and the unskilled. >> and the greek budget deficit is deeper than earlier estimates. the e uses statistics agency says the had 10.5% of gdp last year, which was higher than the 9.6% that was expected -- the eu statistics agency says they had 10.5% of gdp. debt restructuring may be on the

table. athens remains committed to the austerity levels -- measures it agreed to with the eu and the imf. a sports manufacturer had a great start to the year, sales up 13.2%, and 78 million euros for first-quarter profit. our correspondent has market reaction from frankfurt. >> puma, plunging ahead, just like the logo of the company, the share increase in by almost 6%. people pleased with quarterly results, and they are very optimistic. the ceo wants to reach new volumes in sales in the coming years. people here also overwhelmingly positive about news that the french president sarkozy is supporting the italian central bank president as the next head of the european central bank. it is a bit of a surprise

announcement. at this time, germany says the decision will not come until soon, but it does not have its own heavyweight candidate, when one person resigned, taking himself out of the race. a good euro watchdog. >> let's take a closer look at the markets. in germany, the blue-chip kodak closed up almost 1%. -- the blue-chip dax closed up almost 1%. the dow jones closed at almt 1% higher, and the euro is going for one $0.46 cents. -- $1.46. an automaker posted a profit in the first quarter. that is up from 20% from one year ago, and it was ford's best

first quarter in 13 years. they're benefitg from higher sales in the u.s. and from going green. they have brought out smaller, more fuel efficient models, as higher gas prices triggers demand for less gas intensive cars. one of the biggest losers in the global financial crisis is also back in the black. switzerland's biggest bank, ubs, has announced a profit for the first quarter, slightly higher than forecast. the world's second-largest wells manager reported a significant jump in deposits during the first quarter as the bank regain customers. clients had withdrawn about 312 billion euros after ubs was bailed out in 2008 after write offs involving toxic assets. high levels of radiation. 80,000 people have been evacuated so far, and the government has now called, on

another 10,000 to leave. in the capital, tokyo, farmers in the area have been demanding compensation from the plant operator, tepco. >> farmers affected by the fukushima disaster were protesting. radiation is forcing the evacuation of more residents, this time from beyond the mandatory restricted zone. >> what can i do? i am 70 years old. do they understand that pain? i am 70, just something to be thrown away, not a young person who can start again. >> higher levels of radiation have already been found in milk and vegetables from the region, which can no longer be sold. farmers face huge losses, and they want tepco to pay. >> we can not just afford to pick up and leave the way they think we should, so we finally

went to hear just how much compensation they will give us. -- we finally want to hear. >> it is still unknown when and if residents will be able to return to fukushima. >> fukushima is not the only nuclear disaster in the minds of a lot of people. you may remember how the world changed forever 25 years ago on this very day. that ione reactor four at the chernobyl nuclear power plant exploded and unleashed a cloud of radioactive fallout across the western soviet union and europe, making it the worst nuclear accident ever. today, people in the ukraine remembered the tragedy. >> russian president dmitry medvedev and his ukrainianw counterpart remembered the workers who died and more exposed to radiation when the

reactor exploded 25 years ago. >> we honor these people. we will keep the memory of those who died in the chernobyl catastrophe a live for generations. -- alive for generations. >> just a few weeks ago, some were told their pensions and benefits were being cu=. the number four reactor block at chernobyl is problematic. some say it could collapse. estimates vary widely on the number of casualties caused by the meltdown and the aftermath. the soviet union initially tried to cover-up the catastrophe. today's russian leadership's as openness is crucial in crisis situations. -- russian leadership say openness is crucial. >> we must be honored no matter what has happened region we must

be honest in a matter what has happened and no matter -- we must be honest no matter what s happened or the consequences. >> they continue to rely heavily on nuclear energy. >> we will have more on the disaster for the 20th anniversary of the disaster coming up on our show. german and belgian fire crews have managed to bring a wildfire under control that was raging in a national park that straddles two countries' border. much went up in flames before firefighters could get there. there are pockets smoldering underground, but they say mother nature is expected to recover completely. >> investigators say a single spark triggered the inferno. an unseasonable dry spell turned it into a tinderbox, which fueled the flames.

about one-quarter of a nature preserve was incinerated. 350 firefighters labored to bring the blaze is under control, but it will be some time before they can go from. the situation remains precarious. >> we have to keep the area under observation. helicopters played a vital role in keeping it under control. the fire was burning for the populated area. it is still very dry, and there is a danger of sparks carried by the wind is starting up new fires. >> and that is no easy task. heavy equipment cannot be brought in, and the strong wind keeps the fire fighters guessing. >> final preparations under way for britain's royal wedding. there is a peculiar contribution. enter the royal rickshaw.

a venture attached it to the luxury compartment of a luxury car. it also comes with a cut out of prince william -- a live on dw-.

>> welcome back, everyone. it was an event 25 years ago that forever changed our relationship to nuclear power. in the wee hours of the morning on april 26, 1986, reactor four at the chernobyl nuclear power plant exploded, spewing a plume of radioactive debris into the sky, which covered huge parts of the soviet union and europe. the areas contaminated the most were belarus and ukraine. there was a zone around the plants, turning two cities, including pripyat, into a ghost

town. today, few are allowed to enter the no go zone, but on this anniversary, an exception was made to about a greenpeace team to visit. a correspondent joined them. >> no one is supposed to enter the 30-kilometer zone around the chernobyl reactor without permission. i joined a group of journalists accompanying greenpeace experts to the contaminated area in ukraine. >> [speaking foreign language] this is a very special place, because a lot of suffering began here for a lot of people. we live in times when things happen very quickly, and things are forgotten very quickly, but it is important to remember what happened here 25 years ago,

where more correctly, what began here 25 years ago -- or more correctly, what began here, because contrary to other tragedies, this one is still ongoing. >> reactor number four is where it started. it exploded twice while emergency items were being tested. it is recommended that we wear a masked -- mask. >> there are still fine particles of plutonium here in the vicinity of the reactor, and they are very dangerous. if they get into your lungs, then there is an increased chance of developing cancer. that is why the dust here is the biggest enemy. >> another concern is the poor condition of the concrete sarcophagus that workers risked their lives to build around the nuclear reactor. >> [speaking foreign language]

what they're thinking about now is covering the whole area to seal it properly. it cannot be built here on site, because the radiation is so high, so it needs to be transportable, and even this construction would only shield things 50 to 100 years. >> for some people, the exclusion zone is still a work place. like sergei. he was a construction worker here once. now, he is a tour guide. he welcomes the plan to increase tourism to chernobyl. just outside the exclusion zone. >> everyone used to be afraid when they had to work chernobyl, but i think you can see now that things are not always as bad as they look. >> [speaking foreign language] !>> there is lots of work to be

done in the town of chernobyl, which is also in the exclusion zone. a park has just been built here. more than 3000 people work in this zone. what is possible. >> once you start building parks, then i think it is time to reopen the whole zone, so people can come here without any hassle, have a look at things, take a break. that is what i think. >> the nuclear plant is visible from the balconies of the nearby town of pripyat, which has been evacuated. 50,000 people used to live here, and it may be a ghost town forever. thousands of kilometers away in japan, -- it is not hard to think about the disaster thousands of kilometers away in japan. >> we have no idea how big an area up will have to be

evacuated in japan. we know they need to evacuate a radius of an least 40 kilometers, probably more. that does not mean that no one can live in that whole area never again, but there will be towns like pripyat near fukushima, as well. >> before we leave the exclusion zone, we are tested for radioactivity. there are visitors and workers here alike, and the visitors are glad to be going, but the workers will be back here again tomorrow. >> well, the international atomic energy agency says 28 emergency workers died of sickness in the immediate aftermath of the disaster. as many as 4000 cancer deaths are expected as a result of chernobyl. that may include one group in particular known as the liquidators. these were the men who went in

after the explosion to clean up the site. today, one quarter of a century later, many say that their government have abandoned them. >> this engineer often shows visitors around the chernobyl museum in kiev, and he tells them his own experience of the reactor disaster, how he and his colleagues did everything they could to contain it. and how the soviet authorities tried to disguise how bad things work, even from the plant workers. >> [speaking foreign language] it was only when we were on the work bus to the power plant that i saw the reactor was damaged. my hair was literally standing on end. then i just went to work as always. i went into the control desk for reactor block of for you are, and i helped my colleagues who were already there. -- control desk for reactor

block four, and i helped my colleagues. we tried to cool the reactor. >> he already suspected what was later realed. reactor four no longer existed. it had exploded the night bere. he and his colleagues were on the front line of efforts to keep things under control. they tried to limit the radiation, but it was a dangerous and hopeless battle. hundreds of tons of review what the material had been released. many of his colleagues have long since died, and those that are still alive are fighting to be recognized as radioactivity victims and to win compensation. alexei suffers from headaches every day, but doctors have refused to disclose whether that is an effect. the sense of hopelessness overwhelms him. >> i always thought that after chernobyl, nothing like this

could ever happen again, that it would not be allowed to happen again, and now, it has happened, and the news reports say the radio station -- radiohead -- radiatio levels there are as bad as at chernobyl. >> he took up painting, and he wants his pictures to wake people up to the truth. as an engineer, he had faith in the technology, but since the catastrophe of chernobyl, that state has faltered. that is his message now as an artist -- that faith has faltered. >> [speaking foreign language] i am a painter now, so i can let myself see things differently. as an engineer, i would probably say that nuclear energy is safe, but with a bit of distance from my old job, i have to say i have my doubts. >> alexei is planning to auction some of his paintings as soon,

and he wants to donate his proceeds to his colleagues in japan, who are now fighting a nuclear disaster. >> that has been our "in depth" report. thanks for watching. captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org--

ow! of course. thank you. i'd call her honeydew goodbody, not lisa. the very fact that she is called lisa proves that she exists.